With around 100,000 in the pot and a flop of , Philip Sternheimer checked from the small blind and Tamer Kamel did the same from the big. Ole Schemion then took the opportunity to bet 50,000 from the button, which only Kamel called.
Kamel then check-called a bet of 88,000 on the turn before both players checked the river. Kamel tabled the for a pair of jacks, and it was good as Schemion sent his cards to the muck.
Ole Schemion raised to 35,000 and small blind as well as big blind call to see the flop. Alex Bilokur and Griffin Benger checked the flop to the preflop aggressor and Schemion led for 50,000. Call, call. On the turn, Schemion folded after Bilokur had bet 76,000 and Benger called.
The on the river was checked through and Bilokur as first after the button showed the . Benger double checked his cards carefully and eventually showed the for the missed gutshot and worse kicker.
Max Greenwood opened for 38,000 from early position and Philip Sternheimer defended from the big blind. Both players then checked the flop, Sternheimer bet 37,000 on the turn, and Greenwood called.
When the completed the board on the river, Sternheimer bet again, this time 63,000, and Greenwood pushed back with a raise to 167,000. Sternheimer thought for about 45 seconds before releasing his cards.
In the very first hand of the day, chip leader Philip Sternheimer raised to 38,000 from late position and short-stacked Imed Ben Mahmoud moved all in from the small blind.
The big blind folded and Sternheimer snap called, tabling the . The Tunisian needed a lot of help with the , but it wasn't meant to be as the board ran out .
The field has been reduced to seven and Sternheimer is the first chip millionaire.
Ole Schemion has it all. A lot of talent, run good and many incredible cashes despite his very young age. The only thing missing would probably be a bracelet at the World Series of Poker, but that is easily explained as he only now can participate after turning 21 years old back in September. The German starts the final table third in chips.
He also leads the current Player of the Year (POY) ranking for Season 10 of the European Poker Tour ahead of Vanessa Selbst and Thomas Muhlocker. Muhlocker cashed in this event, eventually bowing out in 14th place, but Schemion will increase his lead no matter where he finishes heading into the Grand Final next week further.
The young German is third in the GPI rankings and seventh on the all-time money list of Germany. A few months ago he finished fifth in the EPT10 Prague Main Event for a payday of €218,300. He also cashed in the EPT10 Barcelona Main Event, High Roller and Super High Roller Events to showcase his talent.
In September 2012, Schemion won the Partouche Poker Tour Grand Final for a massive payday of €1,172,850. Only two months later, he also took down the Master Classics of Poker 2012 for € 286,200. The online wizard can be found at the tables under the alias "wizowizo".
Mustapha Kanit is sixth on the Italian all time money list and will start sixth in chips. The online and cash game grinder has relocated to Malta a few years ago and has had a stellar start to this year.
At the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in January 2014 he finished 4th in the $25,500 + $500 High Roller for a career best payday of $ 492,600. Only two weeks later he won two rings at the 2014 Aussie Millions Poker Championship for a combined score of more than $260,000.
In 2011, Kanit had two further big scores with a win in the €2,000 + €200 IPT Nova Gorica 2 Main Event for €200,000 and a sixth place finish in the Partouche Poker Tour Cannes Main Event for €190,000.
Griffin Benger, know as “Flush_Entity” online, used to be a professional video gamer (he was once the best player in the world at Counter-Strike), but then he discovered how much money could be made playing online poker. Since then he has amassed more than $5 million playing online, and between October 2011 and July 2012, Benger was ranked the No. 1 player in the world eight different times.
Nearly one year ago (in five days it will be exactly a year), Benger notched his largest-ever live score when he won the EPT9 Berlin €10,000 High Roller for €429,000. Benger credits part of that win to the support provided by his then new girlfriend, PokerNews presenter Jennifer Robles. The couple are now celebrating one year together, and fittingly Benger is back at a high roller final table.
Will he be able to claim his second EPT High Roller title? He has a good chance as he starts the day second in chips, but only time will tell if history repeats itself.
The wild card on the final table is Imed Ben Mahmoud from Tunisia, who will start with nine big blinds. Several cashes are on his Hendon Mob profile but one in particular stands out. Ben Mahmoud was the first-ever player from Tunisia to win a bracelet at the World Series of Poker.
In September 2012, he defeated a 227-player strong field in the Event #1 No-Limit Hold'em Six-Handed €2,500 + €200 at the World Series of Poker Europe in Cannes for a career score of €147,099. Other cashes include fourth place at the France Poker Series 2010 in Beaulieu-Sur-Mer and 15th place in the EPT8 Sanremo Main Event for a €27,000 payday.
With $2,709,350 in lifetime earnings since 2009, Alex Bilokur is currently ranked 7th on the Russia all-time money list. His best live cash was for $1,134,930, which came back in January 2012 when he topped a 148-entry field to win the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure $25,000 High Roller. That include outlasting the likes of Team Online’s Randy Lew (8th - $108,780) and Isaac Haxton (3rd - $380,730), as well as Team PokerStars Pro Jonathan Duhamel (2nd - $634,550).
Seven months later, BIlokur was back at a high roller final table, this time at the EPT9 Barcelona €10,000 High Roller, where he finished second for €295,451. Bilokur’s other career highlights include a win in the 2010 EPT Berlin €2,000 No-Limit Hold’em for €174,000; first in the 2014 PCA $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em Turbo Six Max for $202,720; and 11th in last year’s EPT Grand Final €25,000 High Roller for €77,400.
Bilokur is perhaps the most experienced player at the table, and he’ll need it too as he begins the day as the second-shortest stack.
, Philip Sternheimer checked from the small blind and Tamer Kamel did the same from the big. Ole Schemion then took the opportunity to bet 50,000 from the button, which only Kamel called.
turn before both players checked the 
river. Kamel tabled the 
for a pair of jacks, and it was good as Schemion sent his cards to the muck.
flop. Alex Bilokur and Griffin Benger checked the flop to the preflop aggressor and Schemion led for 50,000. Call, call. On the 
turn, Schemion folded after Bilokur had bet 76,000 and Benger called.
for the missed gutshot and worse kicker.
flop, Sternheimer bet 37,000 on the 
completed the board on the river, Sternheimer bet again, this time 63,000, and Greenwood pushed back with a raise to 167,000. Sternheimer thought for about 45 seconds before releasing his cards.
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